Shadows of night city

Chapter 19: Ghosts of the Past

The sky was heavy with clouds as Lea and the team laid Nomad to rest beside his mother. She stayed behind after everyone had left, alone in the quiet, needing to feel his presence one last time. Her hand slipped into his jacket pocket, finding a folded letter he had carried with him. She clutched it close, but the time to read it wasn't right yet.

Days later, she received unexpected news: she was pregnant. The revelation hit her with the weight of the life they had lost and the life that was now beginning. The streets of Night City felt emptier than ever as she disappeared into the shadows, becoming a ghost to everyone who knew her.

Eventually, she found herself on the moon, a place far from the chaos they had fought in. It was there, looking back at Earth, that she finally opened Nomad's letter. His handwriting was messy, scrawled as if he'd rushed to put everything down:

Lea,

If you're reading this, then I'm not with you anymore. I can't put into words how much you've meant to me. You were more than a partner or a friend. You were my anchor, the one who kept me going when everything else felt like it was falling apart. You made me feel alive in ways I never thought possible.

I know I never said it enough, but I trusted you more than anyone. That's why I'm leaving everything I have to you—every eddie I made, every bit of savings, everything from the jobs we did together. I want you to have it, to use it however you need. I know you'll make the right choices.

You were the light in my life, and I'm sorry I can't be there for you now. I hope you find peace, even if it's without me. I'll be with you in spirit, in every shadow and every breath you take.

Goodbye, Lea. Thank you for being the one person who ever really knew me.

—Nomad

Lea felt tears slipping down her cheeks, the words a reminder of the love they'd shared and the trust he had placed in her. She pulled out an old photo, one of them together with their fingers up in bunny ears, caught in a rare moment of laughter. She clutched it close, feeling the weight of his absence and the new life growing within her.

And then, as she gazed into the star-filled sky, she felt him beside her, like a whisper of a memory. In that silent communion, she found a small measure of peace. She knew she would carry him with her, along with the future they had unknowingly created. Standing there, a ghost among the stars, she held onto his final words and the promise of their child, determined to face whatever came next.